Demon of the East
by LunaStories
Summary: In a world where demons and humans constantly clash, Sanji is given the news that he doesn't have much longer to live. He sets out to do something meaningful with his remaining time. If he is to die he will go down fighting, taking out a demon with him. When he finally does meet a shackled demon he is not what Sanji expects and it causes Sanji to doubt everything he's ever known.
**A/N: Welcome to the longest one shot I've ever written. Yes, this is the stuff I write when I'm procrastinating on writing the next chapter of Monster Academy. *Nervous laughter* I'm sorry please don't kill me. Okay I hope you guys enjoy this. I absolutely enjoyed writing this at 3 am dying a little from the lack of sleep. Fun right? I don't even know anymore. Ya'll should thank my friend L for convincing me to upload this as a one shot. I could have been more cruel and upload it in two chapters haha. Please do tell me if I made any mistakes as I don't really edit these nor do I have a beta. Well, enjoy!**

 **Note: This is slightly inspired by the Ice Demon's Tale, a super cool manga that is shonen ai and that I adore. I merely borrowed the demon in a cave concept and heart thing but that's about it. The rest is original.**

xxxxxx

"Ah shit." Sanji cursed as another surge of chest pain left him breathless.

He grasped at the table, gasping as he fell to his knees, body convulsing in pain.

 _It's okay. It's okay. I'll be fine._

He repeated his usual reassurances and lies over and over in his head.

Slowly, the pain faded away like the waves of the ocean, and Sanji opened his eyes again.

Those usually clear blue eyes were dull and tired.

Sanji carefully stood back up, his legs unsteady as he swayed back and forth.

He hated this.

With a weary sigh, too heavy for someone so young, he sat himself on his bed to stare blankly at the wall.

He'd developed a heart condition recently and the length of time between each period of pain was getting shorter. Soon, it would kill him. His time was running out.

His time...was running out.

He continued staring at the wall, unseeing and unthinking. Thinking would drive him mad.

Unfortunately a thought came unbidden to his mind, as it usually did after a particularly bad attack.

 _Who will mourn for me?_

He looked around his small hut, noticing the traces of Zeff, now long gone.

Zeff had taken him in, a child abandoned in the forest, many years ago. Ever since then he'd grown up in the small village called Baratie that they lived in.

He lived a fulfilling life in that village. Though many would find it stifling, wanting to move to the capital, he loved the open air and the forests. Sometimes he did wish to see the rest of the world but he was satisfied as long as Zeff was around. He adored the people in his village and he especially loved his foster father even if he never knew how to show it.

He was...happy.

But Zeff died and then everything went downhill.

Killed by a demon, the villagers had said. They found his body mangled and drained of life in a way that only a demon could do.

In this world, it was kill or be killed. Unfortunately humans were on the "be killed" side and these demons that inhabited the land were the killers, the hunters. Most demons were fairly easy to spot as they had forms that were obviously unnatural to the eye. The most dangerous demons though, were the ones with human forms, who could pass as human without even trying.

The capital was just a glorified temple on holy ground and it was the safest place from the life-sucking reaches of the demons. Many people chose to live in or near the capital but some decided to stay in their small villages, taking their chances with the wilderness.

As if to follow Zeff in death, his heart started failing, sometimes pumping erratically and often dangerously close to stopping altogether. The village doctor did not have enough knowledge on the inner workings of the heart to be able to give him a clear diagnosis. There was only one thing about his condition that was clear, he was going to die soon.

His visit to the doctor had been about a month ago, and now, his time was up.

 _I don't want to die._

Sanji's fingers gripped his bed sheets tightly, knuckles white with tension.

 _I'm sorry Zeff but I don't want to join you just yet. There are things I want to do, places I want to see._

Indeed, with Zeff gone, Sanji no longer had anything to tie him down to the village. He dreamed of travelling across the land and perhaps even visiting the capital. He was fascinated with the world they lived in, since he'd always been stuck in this small village. Of course, he was grateful to Zeff and he did greatly enjoy his time there but at the same time he yearned to do something more with his life.

He had lived in a daze after Zeff's death. Life was routine and dull. He would wake up, make himself a quick breakfast, go around the village to help with the farming, and go back home to sleep. Rinse and repeat.

He was almost grateful to this heart disease. It was like a reminder for him to live his life to the fullest and it certainly jolted him out of his grief in a jarring way.

'Better late than never', his failing heart seemed to be screaming with every unsteady pump.

Resolved, he stood up quickly and grabbed his meager belongings. If he died here he would just burden everyone. After all Zeff had him to take care of his funeral arrangements and burial but who would care for his dead body?

He loved everyone in the village and he knew that they did not think of him as a burden, but he couldn't stand letting their last memory of him be one shrouded in pity and death.

It was better this way, he told himself.

Grabbing some parchment and a feather, he wrote a short message for the villagers to find once they figured out he wasn't going about his daily rituals.

The message was essentially 'I'm going on a journey, don't look for me. Take care of yourselves.'

He shoved his belongings in a small knapsack and filled the remaining space with food and water for the journey.

Sanji opened the door to his small house and was met with the scent of the forest and the darkness of night. Inhaling deeply, he looked back at his hut, the place he called home with Zeff for most of his life.

There was no room for regrets, no more time.

WIth a sad smile, he closed the door softly, ending that chapter of his life so that he may begin anew with what little time he had left.

It was the middle of the night but Sanji didn't mind starting his journey at such a weird time, after all, he didn't sleep much anymore.

Sleeping was too risky for him, he didn't want to die in his sleep. He would die going down, like a fighter. He refused to die such a meaningless death.

That was why, his first destination was a cave not far from the village. It was deep in the forest and local legends claim that a fearsome demon resides there. Of course, no one was ever stupid enough to go and check so it's mostly been a bedtime story passed down from generation to generation in their village.

Well now, Sanji was going to be the first idiot to go and actually check out the cave.

If he was going to die anyways, he wanted to go down fighting. What better way to do that than to kill a demon and get some sort of revenge for Zeff?

Sanji knew this was a suicide mission, but that meant nothing to someone on the verge of death anyways.

At least this way he would be known as a demon slayer and not as that poor dying boy.

He'd heard the whispers. It was unavoidable in a village as small as their's. There was no escape from the pitying murmurs, the glances full of sympathy that he didn't need.

Shaking his head to clear his mind from his thoughts, Sanji continued trekking towards the general direction of the cave.

He knew the direction by heart. After all, that was the one path they were not allowed to go on so everyone steered clear of it. The undisturbed foliage marked an obvious path straight to the mouth of the cave.

Sanji travelled for almost two hours in the dark, using nothing but his lamp and instincts as a guide.

By the time he reached the cave he was out of breath, a fact that made him scowl in anger at his own body.

He used to be able to do so much more. Now, just a measly two hour walk was enough to leave him panting and weak.

Catching his breath at the mouth of the cave, Sanji took advantage of the small break to untie his knapsack and take out a sealed jug of water.

Tilting the jug, he took big gulps of water, loving the cool soothing sensation of water after such a tiring walk.

Once he had quenched his thirst, he set down the jug back in the knapsack and tied it to his back again.

Solemnly, he peered into the cave, squinting his eyes to try and see through the all consuming darkness.

This was it.

He gulped, a bit unsteady on his feet as he took deep, calming breathes.

After a few minutes to himself, Sanji finally looked back up with resolve in his gaze.

If he survived this encounter then he would continue on his exploration and dream of travelling the world. If not, then that was his fate.

There was no use going against fate after all. When he'd first been diagnosed he'd cursed and prayed to every god there was, hoping that something would save him.

No one ever answered him though.

He took a hesitant step forward before the rest of his body seemed to catch up and he strode into the cave cautiously.

The lamp would only alert whoever was inside to his presence so he snuffed out the flame and left it on the floor outside. He would come back for it if he survived.

Besides, there seemed to be light coming from deep inside the cave. A glowing blue light that emanated a startling warmth considering this was a demon's cave.

Focusing on that blob of light, Sanji felt his way deeper inside using the walls as a handhold and guide.

Eventually, the corridor shape of the cave seemed to open up into a room of sorts. This close to the dim lights, he was able to finally identify them as glowing blue mushrooms scattered all around the room. They grew in the floors and walls but most of them were focused at the wall all the way in the back.

Curious now, he crossed the wide cave room until he came to a stop several feet away from the wall.

That was...a man.

Sanji tilted his head and squinted.

Yes, it was indeed a man chained to the wall.

His head hung low and he had nothing on but a pair of pants. Both of his hands and feet were shackled to the wall and he didn't appear to be alive.

Approaching closer, Sanji was wary but this man was dead. He wasn't breathing.

Was this also the work of the demon? Now that he looked closer, Sanji could see multiple wounds on the man's body and chest, as if he'd been stabbed and sliced by multiple blades.

Curiously enough, the wounds didn't bleed and Sanji didn't know what to make of that.

He was now close enough to touch the shoulder of the man and he gently cupped his face, intending to lift his head up. He needed to check if the man was really dead.

"Hey-" Before he could say anything another wave of pain in his chest sent him crashing to the ground. Sanji winced at the loud noise that made even as he spasmed in pain. Great, if the demon didn't know he was here before, now it definitely knew.

He curled up onto his side, a hand clutching his chest. He clawed at the dirt, tears of pain stinging his eyes as he gasped in quick breaths, trying to breathe. Just trying to fucking breathe.

 _It's okay. It's okay._

The same old mantra, over and over again.

Finally, after a longer period of time than usual, the pain faded away. Sanji laid there on the floor for a few minutes, just panting in sheer exhaustion, his mind blissfully blank. He was so tired of all this.

Carefully, he turned onto his back, staring up at the glowing blue mushrooms attached to the ceiling of the cave.

"...Oi."

Sitting up lightning fast, he only allowed himself a short moment to cringe at the way it pulled at his sore body before he turned toward the person who had spoken.

Sanji instinctively scrambled back a few feet as he met the irritated, glowing yellow eyes of the person he thought was dead only moments before.

"Wha-" Sanji started to say even as realization dawned on him.

"You woke me up." The man, no, the _demon_ growled out. Yes, there was no mistaking that unnatural color as well as glow of those eyes.

"Demon." Sanji hissed out with hatred in his voice even as he watched the thing warily.

The man seemed to roll his eyes in exasperation with a quick mutter of "Not this again."

There was a silence as they both stared at each other, unsure what to do.

When the demon rolled his shoulders back, as if testing the strength of the shackles, it snapped Sanji out of his daze.

Quickly, he reached into his sack for the knife he had brought with him just for this occasion.

It was a cooking knife that Zeff had gifted to him. It was his most precious belonging and it held the memories of Zeff teaching him how to cook in that gruff way of his.

Today he was going to use it to gut a demon.

His hand tightened on the knife as he squeezed his eyes shut to regain his composure.

His whole body seemed to scream at him that this was wrong. Zeff's teachings were ingrained in him and to use a cooking knife outside of its intended purpose was almost sacrilegious.

He knew that. He knew that and yet...there was no point in anything anymore. These teachings were useless to a dead man. Both to Zeff and him.

Sanji stepped closer and placed the blade above the creature's heart. It would be so simple. All he had to do was plunge it in and it would all be over. He would have killed a demon. Saved his village. Done something meaningful with his life.

So then why was it so hard?

"Hey…" The demon caught his attention, his voice soft in a way that shouldn't be coming out of a demon's mouth.

Sanji's blue eyes met the demon's yellow ones and saw nothing but understanding and determination in there.

"That blade...it's precious to you isn't it?"

Sanji didn't bother answering him. After all, this wasn't a human. It was nothing but a filthy demon.

"Do you really want to taint your blade like that? To take a life with them?"

He didn't but he had no choice.

"Look at me." The words commanded his full attention and Sanji looked up again to meet the demon's glowing eyes.

"There's a difference between being brave and being an idiot. Don't do something you will regret."

Those words shook him somehow and he put down his arm, letting the blade dangle in his grip.

Sanji took in a shaky breath and without meaning to, let his forehead fall onto the demon's shoulder. The demon was shackled anyways, there wasn't anything it could do to him.

"They say demons are good at persuasion. Look's like it didn't take much to convince me huh." Sanji's self-deprecating words were muffled by the warm flesh he'd settled on but he knew the demon heard him.

"Out of all the demons I'm probably the worst at that shit." The demon's voice rumbled through his body and Sanji could feel it. It was comforting. "But I make up for it in raw strength. Who needs words when you can just fight your way out."

Sanji couldn't help the chuckles bubbling out of him. His free hand reached out to grasp at Zoro's left shoulder, to steady himself even as he laughed.

He hadn't laughed like this in a while. Something about this demon was just so comforting and amusing.

Sanji could feel the demon's irritated gaze boring into the back of his head and that only made him laugh harder.

"What?" The demon growled out the question grumpily, as if having Sanji laugh at him was the most offensive thing.

"Nothing, it's just...you're the weirdest demon I've ever met." Sanji paused in his laughter to shift his head to the side and meet the demon's gaze. "Well, you're the only one I've ever met."

This close, Sanji could see that the demon's eyes had almost cat like pupils surrounded by a startling yellow color. His hair was also green, something that Sanji just noticed and couldn't resist letting his left hand slowly rake through those curious green strands.

He watched as the demon almost purred in contentment, his eyes narrowing into slits.

Sanji smiled. This demon may look scary but it was actually kind of adorable.

Right, demon. Coming back to his senses, Sanji snatched his hand away. He quickly put some distance between him and the demon, scowling as he did.

"You put some sort of spell over me." Sanji accused, shaken from the fact that he had gotten so close to the demon when it could have killed him at any moment. Even if it was shackled he shouldn't have let his guard down. Who knew what kind of weird powers demons had. For all he knew the demon could kill him with his gaze alone.

Again, the demon rolled his eyes at the blonde's hot and cold antics.

"Calm down curly brow, I didn't do anything to you."

"Curly brow?!" Sanji said, incredulous. How dare the demon call him that?

The demon raised an eyebrow at that, looking amused. "Well what else do I call you? You didn't give me a name before you tried to brutally murder me."

Sanji frowned at the demon. "As if I'm stupid enough to give you my name. Everyone knows that names hold power. Especially for demons. As soon as you have my name you would be able to control me and eat me."

The so far placid demon gave a lazy smirk at his words, his head lolling to the side as he observed Sanji with those sharp eyes of his.

"Too bad. It was worth a try though."

"You won't be able to control me, demon. I am here to take your life."

"I thought we already went over this." The demon seemed to groan, sighing at the persistency of this blonde.

"Just because I won't be using my blade to kill you doesn't mean I'm still going to let you live. I'll just have to find something else sharp to kill you with."

"You do know that you can't kill me right?" The demon drawled out the words lazily, yawning.

Sanji decided not to answer him, putting his beloved knife back in the knapsack and went about exploring the cave room.

He knew that what the demon spoke was the truth. He wouldn't be able to kill it. Not without a weapon fortified by the temple and imbued with holy power.

He knew that and yet he still came here. He knew this was a suicide mission and he still came. Perhaps he wished for death, but now was not the time to dwell on that.

If the demon couldn't be killed by a normal blade then why had it stopped him from plunging the kitchen knife into its heart?

He mulled over the question carefully, confused about that.

Well of course even if they can't die they can still feel pain.

A part of him believed that but a larger part of him screamed that the demon didn't want him to have regrets.

The demon was being kind. It had stopped him on purpose in order to save him from regretting his actions.

That was the most logical answer but also the most mind boggling one to Sanji. After all, the demon had nothing to gain from stopping Sanji so why had he done it?

The demon was...kind.

This realization was the only thing that stopped him from his search.

Seeing the blonde just standing there, deep in thought, the demon couldn't resist teasing him. "What? Have you given up?"

Sanji only glared at the irritating demon before walking over to grab his knapsack.

"No I haven't. I've just decided that...I'll let you live a while longer. I'm too tired to kill you right now." That wasn't a lie. He was exhausted but he also found that as time passed he had less and less of an inclination to kill this peculiar demon.

In the stories that people told, they always made the more humanoid demons sound like nothing but monsters in human form.

However, his interactions with this demon so far were almost civil. He wasn't a mindless monster. This demon was intelligent and it was like a human. It had personality.

Who was he to decide who lived and who died?

He didn't have the right to do that when he himself was someone susceptible to fate's capricious moods.

Sanji sat himself down two feet away from the demon. Not too far but close enough to keep an eye on him.

He opened up his baggage again and pulled out the jug of water as well as a loaf of bread and some cured meats.

Now that he had time to sit down and relax he found himself utterly famished. He started eating gratefully, glad that he was able to enjoy food while he still could.

Hearing a slight clanking sound, Sanji glanced up and met the demon's eyes again.

He looked...hungry. Following his gaze warily, Sanji realized that he wasn't looking at him with that gaze but rather the food.

To test his theory, Sanji extended his hand holding his sandwich to one side and the demon's head swiftly swiveled in that same direction.

Interesting. He had thought all demons ate humans but it seemed that wasn't true.

Cautiously, Sanji broke off half of his sandwich and stood up to approach the demon.

He remembered wandering the woods as a child, starving for weeks until eventually he collapsed in exhaustion and hunger. That was how Zeff found him and saved him, even if he himself couldn't remember much other than the sheer relief at finally having a warm place to call home and sustenance.

Even if it was a demon, he refused to let him suffer that same fate if he could help it.

Hesitantly, he stopped in front of the demon. The demon gave him a questioning gaze and Sanji sighed before he could second guess himself.

"...Would you like some?"

The demon glared at him and then opened his mouth as if to reject.

Sanji took that opportunity to shove a piece of the sandwich into his mouth, dutifully ignoring the slightly sharpened appearance of some of his teeth. He wouldn't let the demon reject him out of some twisted sense of pride. He wasn't going to let the demon starve because he was an idiot.

His glare now focused on Sanji at full force, he chewed almost angrily before swallowing.

Sanji held up another bite size piece of the sandwich he'd torn off and pressed it against the demon's closed lips.

The demon seemed to struggle internally for a moment on whether or not he should reject when Sanji rolled his eyes and spoke. "Just eat, you dumbass. It's not poisoned or anything."

Sanji knew the demon hadn't been worried about that but still, it was an easy excuse to blame the demon's reluctance to accept his food on. He could accept Sanji's food now that he was 'reassured' it wasn't poisoned.

His glare lessening, the demon obediently opened his mouth again, though somewhat reluctantly.

They went back and forth like this for a while. Sanji feeding him while taking bites from his own half of the sandwich in between.

When the last bite was consumed by both of them, Sanji wordlessly walked over and grabbed his jug of water before going back to the demon.

He tilted the jug and carefully fed the demon some water.

After the demon had his fill Sanji drank a few mouthfuls as well, feeling full and content in a way he hadn't in awhile. Perhaps it was the company that made him feel at peace.

Sanji looked at the demon to find him already staring at him. Before Sanji could say anything the demon spoke up.

"Zoro."

Stunned, Sanji blinked a few times. This was shocking. Demons were notorious for never giving away their names because they could be controlled by others or at least influenced by their true names.

As if slightly unsettled by Sanji's silence he repeated himself.

"My name. It's uh, it's Zoro."

Warily, Sanji replied. "Is that even your real name?"

"Yes, I give you my word." Zoro promised solemnly before smirking. "Of course I didn't give you my full name. But even just a part of my name is enough to have a hold over me, if you use it right. For humans it's different. Your names hold less power and so unless you give me your full name I won't be able to control you. Give just your first name and you won't be in any danger from me."

Could he trust this demon? All the tales and stories he'd heard of them depicted them as these heartless beings that did nothing but feed on darkness and human souls. This demon though, he was different. He'd shown Sanji nothing but kindness so far and even an understanding that he didn't have with the rest of the humans in his village. For some reason he wanted desperately to trust this demon, so unlike humans, but so close to him.

"Sanji." His voice was but a whisper and he repeated it, stronger this time. "My name is Sanji."

"Sanij, huh?" Zoro seemed to roll the words around on his tongue for a bit, mouthing them before giving a playful look at Sanji. "I think I preferred curly brow."

Seething, Sanji retorted. "Oh? Well I think I prefer the name Marimo for you."

Perplexed, Zoro only frowned at the nickname.

"Marimo?"

"Yeah, it means moss ball. Quite suiting for that green hair of your's."

Zoro growled threateningly at Sanji, baring his sharp teeth at the man, but he only laughed at the demon's reaction.

His chuckling was interrupted by a yawn though and Sanji blinked a few times, hit by a sudden bout of sleepiness. Probably a food coma from all the eating he did.

Realizing he couldn't judge the time from this deep in the cave, he stood up and started gathering the stuff he had set out.

As he cleaned he felt the demon's- Zoro's, he mentally corrected himself, eyes on him and lifted his head up to meet his gaze.

There was something he couldn't decipher in that look, almost like confusion but also a hint of sadness before it was covered up by Zoro's usual bored facade.

"Leaving so soon? I guess you do have places to go. Sorry I can't be more accommodating." Zoro tugged at the handcuffs on his hands, rattling them, in sarcasm. "It seems I have my hands tied."

"Ah." Sanji said as he stood and set his bag next to Zoro's feet, already feeling the questions Zoro wanted to ask at his gesture.

Backing up a bit he turned to exit, explaining as he went.

"I'm just going to go check the time quickly and to maybe gather some fruit for us. I thought I saw a few berries on my way here…"

Hiding his relief, Zoro scoffed. "Oh so you're not going to finally leave and give me some peace and quiet. I knew I should have murdered you sooner."

Sanji smiled knowingly at him before leaving. "As if you could."

Zoro didn't know what to think of those words. Did Sanji mean he couldn't hurt him because of his current restrained state? Or did the blonde already know what he suspected himself, that he was finding himself increasingly attached to the human and would probably be unable to hurt him if it came down to it.

Damn it. He was supposed to be the Demon of the East. Merciless and invoking fear in others.

Zoro sighed as he settled in to wait for Sanji. It was going to be a long night.

He tugged experimentally on the chains, feeling the magical energy around them still going strong even though it's probably been many years. Come to think of it, how long has he been here?

Zoro only remembered being trapped here and then falling asleep soon after out of sheer boredom.

Tugging on the chains again, Zoro grinned viciously, as if these weak chains could hold him for long. Soon he would gather enough energy to break free and then, he would decide what to do with that fragile human.

He probably would have broken out much sooner if it wasn't because of his tendency to fall asleep and not wake up until he felt like it.

Lost in thought, it took him a moment before he noticed Sanji was back in the room casually putting away the berries he'd found in the bag next to Zoro's feet.

Zoro almost jerked back, startled.

How the hell had the human gotten so close to him without him realizing? He cocked his head to the side, studying the blonde. For all intents and purposes he was just a normal man. Then it must be his instincts, the most fundamental part of him, trusted Sanji to be near him to some extent.

Sanji wasn't labeled as an 'enemy' and that made it easy for the human to slip past his defenses.

That was worrying. Zoro frowned as he glared at Sanji. He would have to make sure to be more careful next time.

Finally noticing Zoro's frustration, Sanji glanced down at the berries in his hands before offering one to Zoro.

"You should have just told me you really wanted these. Instead of glaring a hole in my head."

Zoro didn't bother correcting Sanji, not wanting to tell the man what he was really thinking about.

He accepted the berries Sanji hand fed to him, feeling thoroughly humiliated by his current incapacitated position. No matter, soon he would be free.

Seemingly satisfied that he had fed the demon, Sanji gave him a soft smile.

Sanji rummaged through his bag and took out a thin sheet, spreading it on the ground a few feet from Zoro before laying down on it.

Perplexed, Zoro observed this strange ritual.

Unable to hold his curiosity any longer, Zoro spoke up. "What are you doing?"

"I'm going to sleep. What does it look like?" Sanji answered, voice slightly shaking from the cold as he closed his eyes and tried to go to sleep.

"...humans need blankets to survive right?" Zoro was genuinely confused. Demons could regulate their body temperature but he knew enough about humans to understand that they didn't have that ability. Meaning they had the unenviable task of carrying extra things around in order to brave the weather of the world.

Sanji opened his eyes again, glaring tiredly at the nosy demon.

"No we don't 'need' blankets but some would be nice yes. It's so cold in here." As if to emphasize that point, Sanji felt another involuntary shiver rack his body.

"...Come here."

Not sure if he heard right, Sanji sat up and stared at the demon, brows furrowed. "What?"

"I said get over here, idiot." Zoro sighed, gritting his teeth as if it pained him to say this. "I can increase my body temperature and it would help you if you slept next to me."

The demon almost mumbled that last part, feeling increasingly embarrassed at the kindness he was showing Sanji. He was supposed to be a scary demon damn it!

Sanji hesitated at first but another cold wind blowing through the cave made up his mind for him.

"If you're sure…" Sanji was about to move his sheets next to Zoro when that idiot had to ruin everything with his words.

"Besides, you're weak right? The cold is not good for your health." Zoro said it offhandedly, since this was his way of showing concern.

Sanji recoiled back as if he had been punched. He had come here to prove himself. To escape from the pity. He knew people thought he was weak and it killed him inside faster than any heart disease could.

And now here he was, being pitied by the one thing he thought would treat him at least with a modicum of respect.

"Forget it." Sanji said harshly as he moved the sheets even farther from Zoro, practically to the other side of the room.

Confused, Zoro strained against the chains for a moment, rattling them as he forgot he was chained.

"What?" Had he said something wrong? Zoro thought back to his words but he had only spoken the truth. Why was Sanji angry?

"I'm sorry if my weak health is a burden to you but rest assured I'll die early enough that it won't be a problem for long." Sanji spit out the words bitterly, settling against the cold cave walls in a sitting up position to try and sleep. No longer comfortable lying down in the presence of the demon.

Sanji wrapped himself using the sheets instead, hoping to retain every bit of warmth he could.

Realizing that Sanji had taken his words the wrong way Zoro spoke up.

"Sanji-"

"Shut up demon." His cold words cut off Zoro and the demon sagged against the chains, exhausted all of a sudden.

So it was back to labels then. He never knew having someone treat him with indifference could hurt so much. He never cared before. Most people didn't call him anything but 'demon' anyways. He wondered why it hurt more when Sanji said it in such a tone.

Clenching his eyes shut in frustration Zoro tried not to dwell on the issue. He hadn't meant it that way. He knew Sanji wasn't weak. Heck he admired the blonde's bravery or maybe stupidity that motivated him to try and kill a demon by himself.

It was his resilience that drew Zoro to him, after all, he didn't have time to waste on weak people. Zoro had only meant it in terms of his current health situation. He knew Sanji had a hidden strength within him and he respected his potential.

Humans were so complicated sometimes.

Leaning his head back against the wall and staring at the ceiling slowly glowing a soft blue by the mushrooms around it, Zoro came to a decision.

He had saved up some energy today, gathered it from his surroundings. The longer he stayed awake the more power he regained.

By doing this he would set back the date for his eventual escape by a few days but it was worth it.

Sliding his eyes shut, a look of concentration flit across his features as he steadily increased his temperature until a small waft of steam rose up from his body.

He wouldn't have to expend so much damn energy if Sanji was right next to him, but because Sanji was on the other side of the room he had no choice but to heat up the entire room to make sure the blond actually felt the warmth.

As Zoro was deep in concentration Sanji was attempting to sleep. For some reason he was feeling warmer and he attributed it to the fact that he had wrapped the sheet around himself instead of just laying it on the floor.

Tomorrow he would decide what to do with the demon. He no longer had the motivation to kill him, but he couldn't stay here much longer either. It was clear what the demon thought of him, just a pitiful human who happened to be around to entertain him while he was confined.

Sanji finally fell asleep, a loneliness settling in his heart that he didn't want to draw attention to.

xxxxxx

Sanji woke up disoriented.

When he finally realized what was happening he gasped, choking on a breath.

He was so used to waking up in pain that he hadn't realized how bad the stuttering of his heart had gotten until it literally stopped his breathing.

Fighting against the sheets he had wrapped himself the night before in comfort, now it was nothing but a cage to trap him as he continued struggling to breathe.

He felt his heart visibly stop and he coughed uncontrollably, going into shock as he collapsed onto his side.

 _No, please._

Involuntary tears pricked at his eyes as he stared unseeingly into the distance, barely registering any noise outside of the faltering thudding of his heart in his ears.

This was worse than the other attacks before. He knew with a sinking realization inside that this was probably the one that would kill him.

He was alone. There was no one to help him.

Alone.

He knew this would happen eventually but he hadn't realized how scary it would be.

He didn't want this. He never asked for any of this.

 _Someone help, please._

xxxxxx

Zoro jolted out of his meditative state when he heard a gasp from Sanji.

Confused he opened his eyes to focus on Sanji, a frown marring his lips at the blonde's unnatural breathing pattern.

His gasps could be heard from here.

As Sanji fought against his sheets Zoro grew increasingly worried.

Did he make the room too hot? Were humans that fragile that they couldn't take too extreme temperatures? Or was it a nightmare?

But even with his lack of knowledge on humans even he could tell something was gravely wrong when Sanji collapsed onto his side.

Opening his senses, he realized with terror that Sanji's heart was not beating steadily. Instead, it was starting and restarting with longer periods of time between each jerky heartbeat.

 _Shit!_

"Sanji!" Zoro called out, trying to check on the blonde.

His words didn't seem to be reaching Sanji though, because even as the blonde stared straight at him with those blank eyes, he knew he wasn't actually seeing Zoro.

He hated that look on Sanji.

The blonde's panting took a harsh turn and when Sanji's heart stopped Zoro was so shocked he couldn't even stop himself from tugging hard against the chains.

It hurt him, the charms on the shackles burning but he couldn't help it.

When he heard Sanji's heart restart again after a coughing fit he almost collapsed from relief.

He had to get to Sanji somehow.

He tugged against the chains futilely again, realizing with despair that he had used what little reserve of energy he had to heat up the room.

Now he only had physical strength and though it was formidable it wouldn't help him against these spells.

"Sanji hold on." Zoro said, trying to reassure the man even if he couldn't hear him through his pain.

Struggling against the bonds, Zoro didn't notice the unnatural quiet until he paused in his actions, a dark feeling of dread filling him that he didn't recognize.

Sanji's heart and breathing had stopped.

Struggling harder, Zoro screamed Sanji's name as he tore the base of the chains from the cave wall, almost destroying the entire wall with the force.

Ignoring the unbearable burning around his wrists for pressing against the magical shackles so hard, he quickly used his hands to tug out the shackles around his ankles as well.

The cave wall quivered unsteadily but remained upright, even as four deep gouges left it unstable.

Quickly, he stumbled over the chains in his hurry to get to Sanji.

"Sanji come on." Zoro muttered as he kneeled next to the blonde and tugged his body onto his lap.

He quickly checked Sanji's pulse and couldn't help the desperate whine that tore out of his throat at the still body.

There was nothing he could do. Sanji was dead.

Zoro's eyes stared blankly into the distance, cradling the human's body to him as his brain seemed to be in denial.

No. There was one thing.

Sanji would hate him for it but he didn't care. He was too selfish to let the human die.

Zoro would save Sanji not because of a sense of kindness but because of his own selfish desires.

He could not lose Sanji like this. Not to something so stupid. If anything he would be the one to decide when Sanji lived or died.

Making a decision, Zoro ruthlessly bit into his arm, sucking a substantial amount of blood before crushing his lips to Sanji's. Using one hand, he opened Sanji's mouth until he could slip the blood in.

 _Come on, please work._

Zoro silently willed it to work, desperation causing him to pull Sanji closer, eyes shut tight.

Using his other hand, he gently massaged Sanji's throat, easing the blood down by mimicking the swallowing motion with his fingers.

With a jolt, Sanji woke up and pulled away, coughing out some of the blood he had left in his mouth.

"What-"

Before he could continue speaking Zoro grabbed his head and guided his lips to the blonde's again.

It wasn't enough, Sanji had to ingest more of his blood otherwise he might revert back to being dead.

Sanji struggled against him, lips shut tightly.

Zoro pulled back a little and waited until Sanji opened his mouth to say something before shoving his tongue inside unceremoniously.

"Mmmf!" Sanji angrily bit his tongue which just trickled more blood into Sanji's mouth so it was fine with Zoro. Sanji had no choice but to swallow the thick liquid even if he felt utterly disgusted doing it.

After Sanji had ingested what Zoro deemed to be a suitable amount of blood he pulled back.

At first the blonde seemed a bit dazed but soon he regained his senses and his face contorted in fury.

"What the hell dude!"

Sanji shoved at Zoro's chest ineffectively trying to get away from the demon.

Too relieved to explain anything yet, Zoro just hugged Sanji.

Shocked by this treatment, Sanji ceased his struggling, for some reason feeling guilty for whatever emotional pain Zoro seemed to had gone through with his almost death.

"Care to explain, Marimo?" Sanji asked after awhile of silence, almost falling asleep as he gently ran his hands through the Marimo's green hair.

Zoro's relaxed and exhausted body immediately tensed and Sanji paused in his petting, feeling apprehensive.

When the demon pulled back, not meeting his eyes, Sanji was alarmed.

"What did you do…?" Sanji asked slowly, trying not to spook Zoro.

With some guilt, Zoro met his eyes and sighed, dreading the fall out of his actions.

"I want to apologize in advance." Zoro said stiffly as he gently set Sanji down on the ground and moved into a kneeling position in front of the blonde.

Sitting carefully, Sanji used the opportunity to wipe off the sticky feeling of blood around his mouth with his sleeve.

"Explain." Sanji demanded seriously as he focused his attention on Zoro.

"Without your consent I bound you to me using blood. In order to heal you I had to give you my blood."

Sanji tilted his head to the side, scrutinizing Zoro.

"That...doesn't sound too bad." Sanji replied hesitantly even as Zoro continued to look really guilty.

"There are some restrictions that come with using demon blood to heal an ailment...you will now be reliant on a steady supply of my blood in order to stay alive. Basically we are bound for eternity now."

Zoro's words seemed to echo with a sense of finality in the cave, nothing but the cold cave walls and glowing mushrooms bearing witness to this moment.

"So, I'm like your slave?" Sanji asked, a bit too calm for the current situation.

"Yes, and no. Some demons take advantage of the bond to treat the human reliant on their blood like a slave but you don't have to worry about that with me." Zoro replied firmly, trying to reassure Sanji. "I have no need for a human slave." Zoro added that last sentence on matter-of-factly. After all it was true, Zoro was more than capable of taking care of himself and he had no need for a human servant.

Though Sanji should be happy with that answer he only felt a bit offended at the fact that Zoro seemed to dismiss his usefulness. With a jolt Sanji seemed to come to the realization that he wanted to be useful to Zoro.

No, this was a good thing. This way he wouldn't be a servant to a demon. He was fine.

"Okay."

Zoro stared at Sanji for a moment, not really comprehending his simple acceptance of what was a life changing event.

"Okay?" Zoro echoed, confused. Shouldn't Sanji be much more worried about the implications of this bond? This meant that wherever Zoro went Sanji had to follow in order to survive. Didn't the man have family back home to return to? People he needed to see?

Come to think of it he didn't know much about the blonde. Seeing Sanji in almost a new light, Zoro recognized Sanji's determined eyes and his bravery.

"I see. So you won't be bothered following me around all the time? I have a goal I have to pursue. I want to become the strongest demon and in order to do that I may put you in danger at times. Is that okay?"

"Yeah." Sanji shrugged nonchalantly. "There's not much for me left anyways. I also had a dream. I wanted to find the spring of eternal life, All Blue, not to heal myself but to help others like me as well. I gave up on it as a lost cause though. But if I'm forced to travel across the lands with you then we're bound to run into it at some point right? I can at least hope for it."

The blonde seemed to brighten up considerably when talking about this mystical well and Zoro didn't have the heart to tell him that he'd never heard of it.

As a demon on the supernatural side of things something as powerful as a spring of eternal life would have surely been mentioned to him once or twice.

But then again he's been in this cave for who knows how long so maybe there was a magical spring like that somewhere.

He was a demon who chose to bind himself to a human forever in order to save said human. Weirder things could happen. Finding All Blue didn't seem too far fetched.

"Then it's decided. We leave the next morning."

"Um Zoro." Sanji placed his hand above his heart in confusion. "Is it normal to not have a heartbeat after this bond thing?"

Zoro froze as he reached out with his senses again, realizing that indeed Sanji no longer had a heart beat.

"Your heart is probably frozen to keep you living for as long as you keep ingesting the blood. I'm not too sure on the details." Zoro shrugged, not caring much about such small problems as a missing heartbeat now that Sanji was (technically) alive and breathing.

"Probably?" Sanji asked a bit incredulous. "Aren't you supposed to know this stuff?"

Zoro shrugged again in an uncaring manner as he stood up, gathering the now slightly blood soaked sheet.

"How would I know? I've never done this before. Just because I know how to do this bond thing in theory doesn't mean I know what the aftermath is."

"You've never done this before-" Sanji repeated in shock as he jolted to his feet. "You tried this stupid bond thing on me without knowing the full consequences?! You really do have moss for brains you stupid Marimo!"

"Well I'm sorry I was too distracted by your death to worry about the consequences!" Zoro couldn't help but snap back, regretting it almost instantly at the stunned look on Sanji's face.

Turning his attention back to the sheet, he folded it with probably a bit too much force, not wanting to face Sanji. He'd revealed too much with his words. It was now apparent just how much Sanji meant to him, even if they'd only known each other for this short period of time.

"Hey." Sanji's soft voice pulled him reluctantly from his vigorous folding and Zoro turned back but stared at the floor, refusing to meet Sanji's gaze. His arms folded across his chest almost as if to protect himself.

Sanji's death had really scared him and the whole emotional rollercoaster of the day was just too much for the usually stoic demon. He wasn't used to feeling so much. It unnerved him how many emotions this human could evoke in him.

Snapping back into focus at the touch of Sanji's hand on his arms, he looked up only for Sanji to lick gently at his mouth.

"You still have a bit left." Sanji muttered as he pulled back a bit to judge Zoro's reaction.

When Zoro only stood in shock, frozen, Sanji took that as an invitation to lean back in.

"I'm dependent on your blood now right? Then best not waste."

At each kitten lick of Sanji's hot tongue against his mouth, his posture slowly slackened until he was basically melting into each small kiss.

Unable to hold still any longer, Zoro groaned into the next kiss and used a hand to thread his fingers through Sanji's blonde strands, angling his head to deepen the kiss. His other hand rested against Sanji's hip, tugging him closer.

Shivering at Sanji's cold skin, Zoro figured he would have to get used to it since Sanji no longer had a beating heart that would warm him. That was okay though, Zoro would be warm enough for both of them.

Their kisses slowly petered out until it was just slow pecks and soft biting of the lips, each touch burning hot in the cold cavern.

"Come on, let's sleep. It's been a long day." Sanji muttered against Zoro's mouth when the demon yawned. It was amazing how he could still be so damn sleepy when he's been sleeping for a still undetermined number of years. He knew it has probably been at least a century or two though.

Sanji slipped out of his grip to settle against the cave wall, sitting up.

Opening his arms in invitation Sanji smirked at Zoro.

"Come on demon, I'm inviting you in."

"Don't regret it, human." Zoro growled back even as he didn't resist and settled his back against Sanji's chest.

"I won't." Sanji whispered against Zoro's bared neck, closing his eyes in contentment at this sign of trust.

Gently folding his arms around the demon, he drifted off to sleep. Here he was, holding the merciless Demon of the East and he's never felt safer.

His last thoughts before sleep were jumbled. Sanji only knew that he came here seeking death, even if he didn't want to admit it himself and ended up regaining hope for the next morning.

He would devote himself to this demon, so kind yet so strong.

"Hey Zoro, what's your full name?" Sanji asked with a slur in his words, the lure of sleep too strong to resist.

Zoro turned his head to whisper a name only he had ever known. No one had called him that since he was born because he never had anyone he could trust. But now, as if a burden was lifted off of him, he could share his everything with this fragile but brave human.

It was only a few words, a merging of letters, meaningless to others yet important to these two, but it was enough.

It was enough to give both of them a sense of hope they haven't felt in years and a belief that maybe everything would be okay.

As long as they had each other.

 _Fin_

 **A/N: There is only one important thing you should remember from this fic, the fact that Zoro was wearing nothing but a pair of pants the entire time this fic took place. Delicious right? I know, that was like 99% of the reason why I wrote this honestly. Lol just kidding but let's be real, shirtless Zoro is such an inspiration and motivator unf.**

 **Now that I have finished thirsting, I just wanted to remind you all that shirtless Zoro is great and all but the thing that really feeds my thirst is reviews. Yes please give me some of that UNFFFF good shit. I may be really tired and slightly delirious as I write this haha. I NEED SLEEP.**

 **I actually had a long in depth plot for this one but decided to end it here because otherwise I'd be writing forever. Depending on whether or not people like it I might continue it and add small ficlets or timestamps.**

 **Please review to feed a thirsty author. Only you can save me from dehydration.**


End file.
